Ask HN: Your biggest non-technical hack/discovery

Re:Ask HN: Your biggest non-technical hack/discovery by zackattack on Sunday October 11, 2009 @11:09PM (#875856)

For many years, jamba juice was running a promotion: buy a $25 gift card, get a free jamba juice. So one day I bought a gift card, got my free razmatazz, and was about to head out on my way when I doubled back.

Me: "I'd like another $25 gift card please."

Cashier: "That will be $25. What is your free smoothie?"

Me: "Peach pleasure."

And then I would pay with the previously purchased gift card, creating an infinite loop with a sunk cost of $25. I was only once refused. I netted at least 50 jamba juices for me and friends..I hope to incorporate this into a screenplay some day.

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Re:Ask HN: Your biggest non-technical hack/discovery by thomaspaine on Sunday October 11, 2009 @11:37PM (#875915)

I did this with Blockbuster a few years back. I believe it was a free $5 gift card for each $50 gift card you purchased. Most stores I've seen now have a policy of not letting you buy gift cards with gift cards.

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Re:Ask HN: Your biggest non-technical hack/discovery by jacquesm on Sunday October 11, 2009 @11:12PM (#875862)

That should teach them about recursion :)

Brilliant to spot the loophole on the spot.

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Re:Ask HN: Your biggest non-technical hack/discovery by abalashov on Monday October 12, 2009 @12:34AM (#876008)

They did not arrest the recursion by specifying that the free jamba juice offer did not apply to gift card purchases?

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Re:Ask HN: Your biggest non-technical hack/discovery by dolinsky on Monday October 12, 2009 @10:15AM (#876721)

while cute, i'll call crap on this :) they specifically make you buy the gift card with a credit card, not another gift card.

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Re:Ask HN: Your biggest non-technical hack/discovery by ax0n on Sunday October 11, 2009 @11:38PM (#875917)

You win.

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